Container for shoe polish and the like



9, 1966 H. BERNHARDT ETAL 3,265,238

CONTAINER FOR SHOE POLISH AND THE LIKE Filed July 29, 1964 HE INZ BERNHARDT FRANZ TEUBER INVENTORS.

BY Jheslem, To 6 Jalzrn United States Patent 6 Claims. 61. 220-43 The present invention relates to a container for shoe polish or other pasty substances.

Such containers are generally formed in two usually metallic parts, i.e., a cup-shaped box and a cover of inverted cup shape, which are friction-ally fitted together and must be pried apart with the aid of a blunt instrument or a specially attached handle, the latter usually having the shape of a winged two-arm lever; for this purpose the lower container part or box is generally provided with an outer annular shoulder on which the prying tool or the handle takes purchase. The need for such tool is, of course, an inconvenience, whereas the presence of an externally projecting handle interferes with shipping and storage aside from the fact that the handle tends to work itself loose so as not to function properly after repeated opening and closing of the container. Moreover, the manipulation requires in each case the use of both hands.

The object of the present invention, accordingly, is to provide an improved container of the type referred to which can be opened with the fingers of one hand, without the need for a separate tool, and which is free from any external attachments.

This object is realized, in accordance with the features of the present invention, by a shaping of the top of the peripheral wall of the box (i.e., that part which extends above the aforementioned annular shoulder) in such manner that it forms an upwardly converging zone with two distinct annular bulges, i.e., a lower bulge preferably close to the shoulder and an upper bulge preferably next to the rim of the box. The cover is given a height substantially exceeding that of this converging zone so that a large part of its peripheral wall projects above the rim of the box when the cover comes to rest on the shoulder and spans the two bulges in frictional engagement therewith, this projecting part being deformed by finger pressure on diametrically opposite locations whereby the cover wall will effectively pivot about the upper bulge so that its own rim will spread away from the lower bulge to facilitate removal of the cover from the box.

The above and other features of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description, reference being made to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a container embodying the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the container of FIG. 1, drawn to a larger scale.

The container shown in the drawing consists of a metallic box 10 and a complementary cover 20. Box 10 is cup-shaped and formed in known manner with a raised bottom 11 surrounded by an annular bead 12. Its peripheral wall 13 is slightly frustoconical and diverges upwardly toward and annular shoulder 14, above which an integral extension 15 of that wall forms an upwardly converging zone with a concavity at 16 separating a lower bulge 17 and an upper bulge 18. The rim of wall portion 15 is inwardly constricted as shown at 19.

Cover 20 has a peripheral wall 21 which normally, i.e. in the closed position of the container, makes frictional contact with the annular bulges 17 and 18 so as to terminate just above the shoulder 14. Wall 21, which is outwardly concave, has an outturned rim 22 engaging the shoulder 14 and curving away from the bulge 17. At 23, the wall 21 merges with the dome-shaped top 24 of the cover.

When it is desired to open the container, the user deforms the upper portion of cover wall 21 at diametrically opposite locations so that this wall assumes the shape indicated exaggeratedly in dot-dash lines in FIG. 2. Thus the upper wall portion 21 is bent inwardly while the lower wall portion 21" is spread outwardly to disengage the lower bulge 17. Since the upper bulge 18 is of smaller diameter than the lower bulge 17, the rim 22 of the cover readily clears the bulge 18 after being lifted off the shoulder 14. Upon subsequent closure, wall 21 re-engages the bulges 17 and 18 for firm two-point frictional contact with the box 10, the upper bulge 18 contacting the cover wall 21 in the lower half of its height.

As shown in FIG. 2, the height of the upwardly converging wall portion 15 of box 10 is less than half the overall height of the cover 21 whereby easy deformability of wall portion 21 under finger pressure is assured. The slight curving of the rims 19 and 22 facilitates both the disengagement and the re-engagement of the two parts 10, 20.

What is claimed is:

1. A container for shoe polish and the like, comprising a cup-shaped box with an annular outer shoulder on its peripheral wall below the rim of the cup, said peripheral wall having an upwardly converging zone above said shoulder and being formed with a lower and an upper annular bulge in said zone, and a cover of inverted cup shape removably closing said box, said cover having an annular upper peripheral wall portion inwardly deformable by radial pressure above said rim and further having a lower peripheral wall portion, terminating at said shoulder and spanning said bulges in frictional engagement therewith, said lower wall portion being disengageable from said lower bulge by said radial pressure, said cover defining above said rim a free space separating said rim from the top of said cover.

2. A container as defined in claim 1 wherein said zone is outwardly concave between said bulges.

3. A container as defined in claim 1 wherein said upper and lower bulges are disposed close to said rim and said shoulder respectively, said upper bulge converging toward said rim.

4. A container as defined in claim 1 wherein said upper bulge engages said cover in the lower half of its height.

5. A container for shoe polish and the like, comprising a cup-shaped metal box with an annular outer shoulder on its peripheral wall below the rim of the cup, said peripheral wall having an upwardly converging zone above said shoulder and being formed with a lower and an up per annular bulge in said zone, and a metal cover of inverted cup shape removably closing said box, said cover having an outwardly concave peripheral wall with an annular upper portion inwardly deformable by radial pressure above said rim and a lower portion terminating at said shoulder and spanning said bulges in frictional engagement therewith, said lower bulge having a diameter smaller than that of said shoulder but larger than that of said outer bulge, said lower wall portion being disengageable from said lower bulge by said radial pressure,

said cover defining above said rim a free space separating said rim from the top of said cover.

6. A container as defined in claim 5 wherein said concave peripheral wall has an outturned rim between said lower bulge and said shoulder.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,074,907 10/1913 Spengler 215--46 Malonyay 22043 Conway 22042 Bronnimann 215-46 Jente 21546 Schurman et al. 22042 THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

J. B. MARBERT, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A CONTAINER FOR SHOE POLISH AND THE LIKE, COMPRISING CUP-SHAPED BOX WITH AN ANNULAR OUTER SHOULDER ON ITS PERIPHERAL WALL BELOW THE RIM OF THE CUP, SAID PERIPHERAL WALL HAVING AN UPWARDLY CONVERGING ZONE ABOVE SAID SHOULDER AND BEING FORMED WITH A LOWER AND AN UPPER ANNULAR BULGE IN SAID ZONE, AND A COVER OF INVERTED CUP SHAPE REMOVABLY CLOSING SAID BOX, SAID COVER HAVING AN ANNULAR UPPER PERIPHERAL WALL PORTION INWARDLY DEFORMABLE BY RADIAL PRESSURE ABOVE SAID RIM AND FURTHER HAVING A LOWER PERIPHERAL WALL PORTION, TERMINATING AT SAID SHOULDER AND SPANNING SAID BULGES IN FRICTIONAL ENGAGEMENT THEREWITH, SAID LOWER WALL PORTION BEING DISENGAGEABLE FROM SAID LOWER BULGE BY SAID RADIAL PRESSURE, SAID COVER DEFINING ABOVE SAID RIM A FREE SPACE SEPARATING SAID RIM FROM THE TOP OF SAID COVER. 